30 Dec 2011

Betfair forced to cancel £23 million horse racing payout

A technical hitch on the gaming website Betfair left punters furious after a huge horse racing payout was cancelled, as our technology correspondent Benjamin Cohen reports.

Normally, if you bet on a horse to win and it does, you get your money. Unless, that is, you backed Voler La Vedette at the big race in Leopardstown on Wednesday via the online gaming company BETFAIR. The website has had to cancel a £23m payout – after a technical hitch.

In a statement, Betfair said: “Customers betting in-play on this race will have seen that Voler La Vedette was available to back at 29 when the in-running market was suspended and that a considerable sum was matched on the clear winner at that price.

“An investigation has revealed that this was due to an obvious technical failure which allowed a customer to exceed their exposure limit. In accordance with our terms and conditions, all in running bets on this race, both win and place, will be made void.

“We fully appreciate the dissatisfaction that this will cause many customers and apologise for a very poor customer and betting experience.”